The Forum Rules: Welcome one and all to Sincronos.net! We hope you enjoy your stay.

Please read our rules carefully, as ignorance won't protect you from their enforcement. As long as you keep these rules in mind - all of which are basic common sense and etiquette - and think before you post, you shouldn't have any problems here.

Registration, Membership and Banning: Anyone is welcome to register for a forum membership and participate in discussions here, provided they observe and obey the rules outlined below. Breaking any of these rules may result in a banning, based on the discretion of the moderators. In the case of most first-time, innocent or genuinely unintentional infractions, a moderator will point out the gaffe and tell you what not to do, or instruct you to change your behavior appropriately. If this happens, accept it and move on. While the moderating staff is generally easygoing and given to leniency within reason, we reserve the right to use any and all means at our disposal to maintain the order and functionality of our forums. This does include banning any registered member without warning, if we deem an offense worthy of it.

If you become banned...go away. Seriously. If you attempt to circumvent a ban by registering a new account, we will find out about it, and you will be banned again. And that would be a waste of everyone's time, including yours.

Respect the Forums: Do not hack the forums or any user on the forums, or hack into or deface another user's account. If you post a malicious link (any URL with spyware or code designed to annoy people, porn links, etc.) you will be banned. Do not make plans to harass, annoy or destroy other websites or forums. Do not bring your personal Internet Feuds into our forums. If you do any of these things, you will be banned.

Trolling for Attention: Don't troll. Trolling is starting arguments or being deliberately abrasive solely to garner a reaction (read: piss people off). To those of you who like to PM admins or mods, just because someone disagrees with you does not make them a troll. We know the difference.

Language and Profanity: This is an English-language discussion forum. If you want to be understood by our members, please post in English.

There are no specific rules against the use of profanity, and it is something we will all inevitably engage in from time to time, so those who are sensitive to this should consider themselves forewarned. If you find that you are frequently offended by the language used here, you are welcome to PM me about it and I may consider implementing some optional language filters for the board. But to reiterate, there are no official rules against the use of profanity, nor are there ever likely to be. Excessive use of such language might carry the risk of making yourself look inarticulate, but that's about it.

Each to Its Own Place: For every post, there is a proper place. For example, tech talk belongs in the Technocracy forum, creative writing in the Creative Writing forum(imagine that), graphics and artwork in the Art Gallery...you get the idea. The aptly-named General Discussion forum is the place for general, nonspecific discussion. Making sure you're posting in the appropriate subforum helps to keep the place organized, and everything running smoothly.

Political Infighting: The management and staff of Sincronos.net, like most thinking people, have deeply held and widely varying political opinions and beliefs. And as some of us enjoy discussing those things, we have set aside a dedicated subforum for political discourse. And anyone is welcome to participate, regardless of your personal stance or background on a given topic. Those who do wish to talk politics, however, take note: be respectful and mature about it. We don't expect you to agree with us or each other about everything, but we do expect you to maintain the same sense of decorum you would in any other discussion. Be aware of the line between attacking or dissecting a person's position or ideas, and taking personal swipes. As an aside, I've acquired a very low tolerance for tantrums and melodrama. Those who are sensitive to having their opinions and positions dissected or opposed should probably steer clear of this area.

If you find yourself wondering if the post you're composing might cross any of these lines, please save us all the trouble and use your browser's "back" button instead.

Respect the Staff: The forum's moderating staff members are here to keep the forums safe, sane, and secure. Please do not harass or intentionally annoy the mods. If they ask you to do something, please do it. If you do not like the mods or the moderation here, then feel free to not post here. Also, do not presume to tell staff members how to do their jobs. This is possibly the single most important rule for everyone to remember.

Personal Harassment: If somebody is harassing you on the forums then discuss it with them over PM or email before contacting a mod about it. Flames and insults do not constitute harassment. Please do not post others' personal information (phone number, addresses, emails, etc.). Try to stay out of other peoples' personal lives as well. Violating this rule will get you banned very quickly.

Keep It (Work) Safe: Keep all images work-safe. Please do not post any illegal (child porn, bestiality, etc.) images or you will be banned immediately and without question, and legal authorities may be informed. Graphic depictions or photos of gore, bodily waste, or other such imagery intended to generate shock or disgust, and for no other purpose, are also heavily frowned upon. As a general rule, ask yourself "would my mother and boss be comfortable viewing this image?". This is a public forum, after all. There can be exceptions for threads for artwork or written material containing "mature" subject matter, but we require that these be cleared with a moderator or admin beforehand, and that you begin the thread's title with "[NWS]" as a clear content warning. Neglecting to do so, or posting such content in non-designated threads, is asking for trouble.

Update: The addition of the spoiler tag gives us some new options here and I've decided to update this rule accordingly. Images and video clips containing some degree of "questionable" or potentially NSFW content are now allowed under one condition: that they be initially hidden behind spoiler tags, and clearly marked as having potentially unsafe content. For example:

Code:

[spoiler=NSFW image]yourmom.jpg[/spoiler]

That said, please continue to exercise proper judgment. If you have questions as to whether a post you're considering would be allowed under this rule, please consult a moderator or admin. Illegal content, as originally described above, remains strictly prohibited.

Sig rules: If you choose to include graphics or banner images in your forum signature, please limit the size (in dimensions) of said image(s) to less than 150 pixels high and 500 pixels wide, at maximum. You can use multiple images if you like, but their combined dimensions must also fit within the 150x500 size limit. The content of your sig image(s) must also adhere to the requirements posted in the above paragraph.

No Warez Alloud: No warez, software cracks, CD codes, or illegal programs that are used to either crack software or perform any malicious activity are allowed on the public forums. This includes discussion and/or promotion of such. These things can get a website into serious legal trouble very quickly, so this rule must be followed strictly. No exceptions.

Creative Control: Personal creative assets -- graphics, artwork, audio recordings, video footage, written material, or any other creative work -- are guarded fiercely in this community. We treat these things as if they were copyrighted. Do not copy, alter or use another person's work, for any purpose, without their explicit permission. In addition, do not post torrents or links to any other form of illicitly shared copyrighted media, be it music, movies, artwork, books or software. The only exceptions to this rule are things which are freely available in the public domain. If you have any specific questions relating to this, by all means ask someone.

SpamSpamSpamSpam: We generally frown on spam. "Spam", for the sake of these rules, can be defined as empty, usually very short and completely pointless posts which do nothing to add to the discussion topic in which they occur, and serve no purpose except for adding to that particular member's post count. To save everyone the annoyance, I'll tell you straight out: We don't care about your post count, we care about the quality of your posts. Having a high post count will get you a series of numbers in the profile info below your name, and that's it.

Having said that, we make no pretense about being serious all the time; one of the purposes of any discussion forum is to have fun, after all. Just keep things in perspective.

Shameless Self-Promotion: If the only reason you've joined our forum is to advertise your own site or forum, please kill yourself and save us the annoyance and the trouble of banning you. This also applies to threads started for this reason and no other, particularly if they constitute your first or only post. Such things are considered to be, at the very best, extremely poor form.

The Grudge: Should you decide, for whatever reason, that you just don't like our forum, or the way we run it, or the people who post here...well, the door's right there. Just leave. I'm sure we'll all be happier for it. Making a half-assed bid for Internet Martyrdom after being called out for ignoring a clearly posted rule or notice, or sending a pissy tirade via PM to me or any of the other staff on your way out the door, will only cause you to lose whatever respect any of us might have had for you to begin with, and (if it's me) may also result in further public humiliation. I might even send a creepy little kid who meows like a cat to stare at you at all hours of the day or night, if the mood strikes me.

The Final Word: Please do not try to cleverly circumvent any of the rules listed here. These rules are general guidelines, are flexible, and are also subject to the interpretation of those who wrote them. Treat others with respect, and you will be treated accordingly. Disrespect this forum, its staff or its members, and you will also be treated accordingly. If the meaning and intent of any of these rules are unclear to you, please ask someone for an explanation.

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